Category Archives: Festivals

Post navigation

DAY 1 # NaBloPoMo

Month of November started with an auspicious day Bhai Dooj …

Story Behind Bhai Dooj

Long time back, Surya, the sun God, was married to a beautiful princess called Samjna (also prounced as Sangya). In course of a year, she presented Him with twins. The twins were christened Yama, and Varni or Yamuna, and they grew up together.
However, Samjna, after some time, were unable to bear the brilliance of her husband, decided to go back to earth. However, she left her shadow, Chaya, her exact replica, behind, so that to Surya, it would appear that she is still there.However, Chhaya turned out to be a cruel stepmother and was very unkind to the twins. She soon gave birth to her own children, and convinced Surya to drive out Samjna’s twins from the heaven. Varni fell to earth and became the river Yamuna, and Yama went to the underworld (hell) and became the King of Death.

Years passed. Varni married a handsome prince and was haapy in her life but she missed her brother wanted to see him. Yama, too, missed his sister and decided one day to visit her.

After hearing the news of her brother’s visit, Varni prepared a great feast in his honor. It was two days after Deepavali, so her home was already decorated. Yama, too, was delighted by his sister’s loving welcome, and brother and sister spent a pleasant evening in each other’s company, after their long period of separation.

When it was time for Yama to return to his kingdom in hell, he turned to his sister and said, “Dear Varni, you have welcomed me so lovingly. But I did not bring you a gift. Ask, therefore, for something and it will be yours.” So inreturn Varni asked from him that all brothers should remember their sisters on this day and visit them if they can, and that, on this day, all sisters should pray for the happiness of their brothers. This is how the custom of Bhai-duj, or bhai-phonta, came into practice.

Today kids get ready early morning, sisters pray to God for their brothers long life.

Tikka for Bhaiya

Sweet time for Bhai

Gift for sister

Bhai -Behan Ka pyaar – Bhai Dooj ka tyohaar

This Post is written for Day#1 of NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month) which challenges you to a blog post every single day in November. Publish posts daily, meet other bloggers, and try something new.

Advertisements

Rate this:

Karva is another word for ‘pot’ (a small earthen pot of water) and chauth means ‘fourth’ in Hindi (a reference to the fact that the festival falls on the fourth day of the dark-fortnight, or krishna paksh, of the month of Kartik).

Karwa Chauth is a fast undertaken by married Hindu women who offer prayers seeking the welfare, prosperity, well-being, and longevity of their husbands. A married woman who observes this vrat is called ‘Saubhagyavati’ (joyous and happy state of wifehood).

Story of Karva Chauth

Long time ago, in the city of Indraprasthapur there was one Brahmin named Vedsharma. Vedsharma was happily married to Leelavati and had seven great sons and one deft daughter named Veeravati. Due to only sister of seven brothers she was pampered not only by her parents but also by her brothers.

Once she got matured, she was married to a suitable Brahmin boy. After marriage, when Veeravati was with her parents, she observed Karwa Chauth fasting for the long life of her husband along with her sisters-in-laws. During the fasting of Karwa Chauth Veeravati couldn’t bear the hunger. Due to weakness she fainted and fell on the ground.

All brothers couldn’t bear the miserable condition of their adorable sister. They knew that Veeravati, a Pativrata, would not take any food unless she sights the moon even if it costs her life. All brothers together made a plan to trick the sister to break her fast. One of the brothers climbed on the distant tree of Vat with sieve and lamp. When Veeravati gained the conscious, rest of the brothers told her that the moon has risen and brought her on the roof to sight the moon.

Veeravati saw the lamp behind the sieve on a distant Vat tree and believed that the moon has risen behind the thicket of tree. To get over her hunger she immediately made offerings to the lamp and broke the fast.
When Veeravati started having the meal she got all sorts of bad omen. In the first bite she found the hair, in the second bite she sneezed and in the third bite she got invitation from her in-laws. After reaching her husbands’ home for the first time she found the dead body of her husband.

On seeing the dead body of her husband Veeravati started crying and blamed herself for committing some mistake during the fasting of Karwa Chauth. She started mourning inconsolably. On listening her mourning Goddess Indrani, the wife of God Indra, arrived to console Veeravati.

Veeravati asked Indrani why she got such a fate on the day of Karwa Chauth and begged to make her husband alive. On seeing the remorse of Veeravati, Goddess Indrani told her that she broke the fast without giving Argha (offering) to the moon and due to that her husband met untimely death. Indrani advised Veeravati to observe Chauth fasting on each month throughout the year including the fasting of Karwa Chauth and assured that her husband would come back alive.

After that Veeravati observed monthly fasting with complete trust and all rituals. Finally due to accumulating Punya of those fastings Veeravati got her husband back.”

Rate this:

Dussehracelebrates the Hindu god Rama’s victory over the demon king Ravana and the triumph of good over evil. The epic Ramayana tells the story of the Lord Rama who wins the lovely Sita for his wife, only to have her carried off by Ravana, the demon king of Lanka. Ravana plays an important role in the Ramayana. According to the great Hindu epic Ramayana, Lord Ram killed Ravana on the tenth day that is Dussehra. The festival of Dussehra is also known as Durga Pooja and in eastern part of India people worship Goddess Durga all the nine days and celebrate Dussehra as it was on that day that the demon Mahisasura was killed by the Goddess.

Mahishasura By Goddess Durga :Another legend is connected to Goddess Durga. According to the story, all the Gods in swarglok and the living beings on earth were upset by the tyranny of the demon Mahishasura, because he had acquired invincible power to conquer the world. He was undefeatable, even by the mighty deities – Lord Brahma, Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva. Therefore, all the Gods decided to create a power, which would destroy Mahishasura, freed the living beings from his despotism and restore the swaglok to them. This gave rise to the creation of Goddess Durga, an avatar of Ma Shakti. With the weapons given to her by the Gods, Goddess Durga went to fight against Mahishasura. She defeated the demon, successfully, and restored the swaglok to the Gods, as promised. Her victory is celebrated as Vijayadashmi or Dusshera, by many people following Hinduism.

We all are happy and celebrating this every year but it’s time to kill demon in ourself !!!

Rate this:

The last among the nine forms of Maa Shakti is Goddess Siddhidatri who is worshiped on the ninth or final day of Navratri. ‘Siddhi’ is a Sanskrit term which means ‘perfection’. Goddess Siddhidatri has four arms. She holds a Chakra in her right lower hand and a mace in the upper. In the left lower hand there is a conch and in her upper left hand a lotus flower. She is seated on a lotus flower with the lion as her mount.

The Goddess Siddhidatri is capable of giving all sorts of occult powers and is also the possessor of 26 different wishes to grant her worshipers.Legend has it that the Supreme God Shiva got all these ‘siddhis’ by worshiping Maha Shakti. With her gratitude the half body of Shiva became that of the Goddess Shakti and therefore he also came to be called as ‘Ardhanarishvar’. The Siddhi that she provides is the realization that everything is Supreme Being or Brahman.

Rate this:

Mahagauri is the eight form of Goddess Shakti. Her color is white. Whiteners is shown by shell, moon etc. Mahagauri means one clean and bright like a ray of lightning.

Maa MahaGauri Pooja on Ashhtami in Navratri Festival

This is the form of Goddess Parvati when she did penance to get Lord Shiva as her husband. It is believed that due to the intense Tapas performed by her without moving caused soil and dust to collect on her body. Lord Shiva cleaned her with water from Ganga that’s why she get whiteners as shine & got the name as Maha Gauri.Purity is depicted in this form of Durga.

The Goddess is in the form of eight-year old child with complexion as fair as a conch, moon and jasmine. Her clothes and ornaments are white and pure. She has three eyes and four arms. Her right upper hand is in the pose of allaying fear and right lower hand holds a trident in it. The left upper hand holds a tambourine and the lower one is in the pose of blessing.